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HomeMy WebLinkAbout9 Sept 2010} i RO '�y A& September, 2010 Volume 4, Issue 7 Gem Lake News Gretchen Artig-Swomley, Newsletter Editor Bear Sighting in Gem Lake Area Earlier this summer, two Gem Lake residents spotted a young black bear helping himself to a bird feeder on the back deck of one of their homes. Hutch Schilling called his neighbor Chuck Watson at about 9:30 at night back in late June and asked him to run right over. From a darkened back room, the two watched the bear standing on its hind legs on the outside deck. The bear had a bird feeder in each front paw and was attempting to get a little snack. The two neighbors then watched the bear decide instead to see through the glass of the room where the two were standing. "It was quite a sight," said Chuck. "We were literally nose to nose with the bear, with only the thickness of the glass separating us." Eventually, the bear tired of that and just sat down on the deck to take a little break... This is when Chuck and Hutch decided to call the Ramsey County Sheriff and report the site. He then wandered off towards the back of Hutch's property. (continued on page 5) Smash Up on Goose Lake Road Several golf carts raced up the hill towards the western pedestrian crossing on Goose Lake Road on Friday August 13, leading a passing driver to think they were going to race right across the road in front of her. She did what all of us probably would have done -- she slammed on the brakes. Unfortunately the driver behind her didn't have enough time to react. That driver rear ended her hard, creating quite a bit of mayhem on the road near the golf course. Police and rescue vehicles responded quickly and a resident nearby who witnessed the accident helped the rear ended driver steer her car off the road a bit. This driver was slightly injured in the smash up. The accident left bits of glass, plastic and small parts all over the road near the cross walk. The Gem Lake City Council has expressed concern in the past about driver and pedestrian safety in this area, hoping everyone will just slow down a little... City Council Approves 2011 Preliminary Budget A preliminary budget of $426,015 for 2011 was approved by the Gem Lake City Council on August 17 at the City Council Meeting. This budget includes a general tax levy of $361,245 and a debt service levy of $52,000. Cities throughout Ramsey County must approve a preliminary budget number and submit it to the county by no later than September 15. Throughout the autumn months, each city is allowed time to further refine its budget and submit a final number in December. However, the final tax levy cannot be higher than the preliminary number due in September. Property tax revenue are expected to make up approximately 84% of the budget, with the bulk of the remainder coming from licenses and permits (3%), miscellaneous income (9.75%) and Intergovernmental income (2.52 As with previous years, expenditures will fall into three main categories: Public Works, which will make up 17.75% of the 2011 budget, General Government, which will make up 55.44% of the budget, and Public Safety, which will make up nearly 27% of the budget. Public Works covers such things as road maintenance, ice and snow removal and park maintenance. Road maintenance costs are budgeted to be up 68.45% over last year to cover some necessary road repairs in the business district and several other areas. The ice and snow removal budget will remain unchanged over 2010 and the park maintenance budget is a big flat "zero." Public Safety covers police, fire protection, animal control and building inspections. The only increase in this category will be a 3.14% projected increase in police services. General government covers such things as city council, general government, legal services, elections, financial administration, planning and zoning and costs associated with the running of Heritage Hall. In this category, general government and Heritage Hall costs are up slightly. "We are working hard to keep the budget and the tax levy in line with 2010, without cutting services," said Gem Lake Mayor Bob Uzpen. "We are on track to accomplish this." As in previous years, input from citizens would be welcome throughout the budgeting process. Hunting and Weapons Discharge Ordinance Discussed A proposed ordinance prohibiting the discharge of dangerous weapons with the City of Gem Lake was extensively discussed again by the City Council on August 17. Ordinance #120, if passed, would provide exceptions to this rule for County or State -organized hunting to manage wildlife populations, when approved by the City Council-, defense of people and property from vicious animals, and for law enforcement personnel in the course of their duties. This proposed ordinance was the subject of a public hearing last month and several previous council and planning commission meetings. A good deal of feedback was obtained on this subject, both for and against a ban on private hunting. VLAWMO Begins Study of Gem Lake Water Quality The Vadnais Lakes Area Watershed Management Organization (VLAWMO) is now launching a new project to study the water quality in and around Gem Lake and to determine methods for increasing the overall health of the lake. VLAWMO has determined that Gem Lake is an "impaired" lake, due to nutrient levels, a lack of oxygen, and declining water levels. It is unknown how much loading from pollutants Gem Lake is receiving from its surrounding "sub -watershed." (The marshy areas around the lake.) The study will begin in early fall and focus on two objectives: pollutant load estimates and retrofit site assessment, or more plainly put: how bad is the lake messed up and what can we do about it. As part of the study, phosphorous and sediment load run-off from the surrounding area will be estimated. Locations of potential sites for retrofits will be determined. This might involve finding ways to divert, reduce or disperse pollution before it gets to the water. The study will be conducted by the Ramsey Conservation District. Results should be available later this fall. Primary Election Results in Gem Lake A total of 56 of Gem Lake's 285 registered voters turned up to vote in the primary election on August 10. Two people registered to vote on election day. As it pertains to the Governor's Race, 19 voters selected Margaret Anderson Kelliher, 11 picked Matt Entenza, 14 favored Mark Dayton and 7 selected Tom Emmer. As you may know, our City Attorney Trevor Oliver ran for the position of Judge in the 2nd District Court #16. Although he didn't make it this time, Trevor did carry Gem Lake, as well as a few other areas. The top two vote -getters for this office were Gloria Bogen, with 11,076 votes and Mark Ireland, with 9,246 votes. City News Page Time to Trim Branches in the Right -of -Way Remember, if your trees have branches that hang over streets or into a public right-of-way, it is your responsibility to trim them back. In previous years, some of Gem Lake's many trees have caused difficulties for snow plows trying to keep our streets clear. If you are in doubt about a particular tree, just give Gem Lake Mayor Bob Uzpen a call. (See page 6 for contact information.) Candidates for City Council The deadline has now passed for filing to run for office in Gem Lake. There are two open positions on the city council. Candidates are Gretchen Artig-Swomley and Rick Bosak. The term of office is four years. Election Day is November 2. No "election trackers" seem to be following either candidate around yet. Hmm... High School Seniors Take Note If you are a Gem Lake high school senior this fall, plan now to apply for the 2011 Gem Lake Scholarship Program. The 2010 recipient was Jamie Nadeau. Applications will be due next March and will be available through your counselors at school. You must be a resident of Gem Lake to apply. The $500 award is designated for post secondary education. Call City Secretary Jean Reiter with any questions. The Alternative Would Be Bad The Gem Lake residential sewer system has been televised and routine maintenance has been completed. The sewer system has been found to be in good working order. Enough said Gem Lake Business Burglarized One or more knuckleheads burglarized Cafe Cravings between 3 a.m. and 5 a.m. on Friday, August 27. The front glass door was broken out and the registers were gone through, although nothing appeared to be missing. None of those great muffins were gone. Bunch of dopes! The police are looking into it. MS-4 Report is the Subiect of A Public Hearing A state mandated report on storm water management, called the MS-4 Report has been completed by council member Jim Lindner and accepted by the State of Minnesota. Jim spent countless volunteer hours trudging all over Gem Lake to document and photograph inflows and outflows in our city, as required by the report. A public hearing on the report was held August 17, during the August City Council Meeting. Although the attendance at this public hearing was a bit on the light side, the subject is an important one. Jim outlined where storm water flows in and out of our city and what happens to it. He also covered the various ways Gem Lake is seeking to educate the public about how each person's actions affect overall water quality in the area. Wind Energy Ordinance is Being Drafted This summer the Gem Lake Planning Commission began drafting a wind energy ordinance. After gathering information from surrounding communities and one local wind energy expert, the planning commission held a public hearing on the subject in August. A draft of a wind energy ordinance will be reviewed again at the September City Council Meeting. Upcoming Road Work in Gem Lake As with every other city, town, county and parking lot in the State of Minnesota, the City will have its share of road projects this fall. Ours are just a little smaller and more easily accomplished. Pavement issues on Tessier Road will be fixed in the upcoming months, as will drainage problems with the ravine in the business district off Scheneuman Road. National Night Out Celehrated on August 3 Gem Lake residents enjoyed food and fellowship at this year's "National Night Out," held August 3 at Heritage Hall. This national event is held annually throughout the United States to celebrate the power of neighborhood action in crime fighting. "Neighbors who know each other are more likely to look out for each other," said Sgt. Eric Bradt of the Ramsey County Sheriffs Department. Eric was on -hand with his daughters to pass out crime fighting and water safety information and to meet Gem Lake residents. City Council Members and Gem Lake's Mayor, Bob Uzpen were also present to greet neighbors. "This is really an important event for all of us," said Bob. "We want our residents to be involved with the community and to get to know each other." In addition to crime fighting booklets, food and refreshments were in plentiful supply. This year's event was funded through the city's charitable gambling revenues. For copies of the crime fighting booklets, contact City Secretary Jean Reiter. Unfortunately, we can't give you any of the extra sandwiches. Bear Gets Snack in Gem Lake --Moues on (Continued from page 1) "We were waiting their arrival, but the bear had moved by the time the sheriff got there." The two neighbors grabbed flashlights and went into the back yard where they were joined by two deputies. "We searched for about 15 minutes but were unable to locate the bear. The deputies were excited to get a picture of the young bear, but to no avail." Based on police reports this summer, bears have now been sighted in Maplewood (near Maplewood Mall), and in White Bear (near the Manitou Ridge Golf Course). However, while bear sightings are not unheard of in our area, they are still highly unusual. Please Note!! Election Information Mistake in White Bear Press Several years ago, Gem Lake changed its term of office for the position of Mayor from a two year term to a four year term. This was done prior to the 2008 elections. Unfortunately, this change was not fully reported to all relevant parties at the time. As a result, the White Bear Press reported in its August 25 edition that no one was running for the open position of mayor in the 2010 elections, which are scheduled for November 2. The article stated that the mayor would, therefore, be elected by write-in votes only, which is false. In reality, no one is up for election for mayor this time. Bob Uzpen was elected to a four year term in 2008 and will be up for election in 2012. Fortunately, the proof of the upcoming ballot that came from Ramsey County for our approval, is correct and does reflect that there are only two positions up for election in Gem Lake, both of them are city council spots. There will be a correction in the White Bear Press soon. The City of Gem Lake PHONE: (651)747-2790 FAX: (651) 747-2795 City Hall Address: 4200 Otter Lake Road Gem Lake, MN 55110 GENERAL E-MAIL: Cit gemlakemn.orq Newsletter e-mail: gr et+;henas�ast.net To reach the Gem Lake City Secretary Jean Reiter: Phone: (651) 747-2790 Jean's E-mail: Jean.R'61ter4c-,,)CQranlsev.nln us - To report incidents for the Neighborhood Watch program or for information on that program contact Block Captain Chuck Watson 651-653-8319; Charles -Watson a,bdk.r_,om We're on the Web! See us at: www.gemiakemn.org CITY OF GEM LAKE 4200 Otter Lake Road Gem Lake, MN 55110 September/October Meetings The following Gem Lake September 13, 2010 Meetings will be held at City Council Workshop at Heritage Hall through 7:00 p.m. �( September and October, / \ 2010: September 21, 2010 September 7, 2010 Planning Commission Meeting at 7:00 p.m. City Council Meeting at 7:00 p.m. October 4, 2010 City Council Workshop at 7:00 p.m. Your Gem Lake City Council Bob Uzpen-Mayor Phone: 651-492-5083 City Council Members: Gretchen Artig-Swomley Phone: 651-260-9742 Rick Bosak 651-426-9695 Jim Lindner Phone: 651-429-7597 Tom Rasmussen Phone: 651-426-8854 For more information on meetings, city ordinances, recent events, permit procedures, etc. please consult the Gem Lake web -site. The address is www.gemiakemn.org Each Gem Lake Newsletter is also posted on the web -site under the October 5, 2010 Planning Commission Meeting at 7:00 p.m. October 19, 2010 City Council Meeting at 7:00 p.m. news section. Please email your ideas, comments and suggestions. See box at left for detailed contact information.